Prosecutors said on Saturday that a Midtown coffee shop dishwasher who was slashed in the neck during a pointless quarrel over an occupied restroom lost a significant quantity of blood in the midday attack and required 19 stitches to repair the painful wound.
The attacker, Wagner Louis, was ordered to be held without bail in connection with the Wednesday incident outside Moka & Co., an organic Yemeni coffee company located on W. 34th St. near Seventh Ave.
Louis, 32, is charged with assaulting the dishwasher after the employee informed him that the restroom was occupied and he was not permitted to use it.
Zainab Tabasi, a worker at Moka & Co., told the Daily News on Thursday, “He was like, Wait, wait, there’s somebody in there.” I’m not sure how, but that then kind of escalated into a dispute.
When asked to leave the business, Louis allegedly acted out and started screaming at the employees. According to police, the suspect drew a knife and cut Louis’ neck during the altercation around 3 p.m. when the dishwasher followed him outside.
Why are you acting so disrespectfully? “What?” Tabasi inquired. In any case, simply go.
At Louis’ arraignment, prosecutors stated that the dishwasher had sustained two deep gashes on the right side of his neck in addition to significant bleeding from the same area.
“I thought he was dead the moment I saw that,” Tabasi recalled. His veins were actually visible to me. I assumed he had left.
After being transported by emergency medical services to Bellevue Hospital, the coffee shop employee spent many hours in severe condition before being stabilized.
After a four-block chase, responding officers apprehended Louis on Park Ave. close to E. 33rd St. after he had fled to a waiting white Honda Civic. He was accused of possessing weapons, assault, and attempted murder.
Louis has three past felony convictions, all for narcotics sales, according to the prosecution. In 2023, he shot a man in the leg at close range in Brooklyn, and he is currently out on bail pending trial for attempted murder.
Dean Vigliano, Louis’ lawyer, stated that he was looking into the matter and was unable to provide any other comments.
